B-18. Original Realms

Portal Chamber

Carla flew around and studied every inch of the portal. There were a few sparking areas, but most of the machine looked properly taken care of. This shiny blue cube in one slot appeared to be a key power source, but Carla had no idea what it was. "So, uh… do you have a master's in engineering or something?" Dipper asked, questioning the kitten's technical knowledge.

Carla whipped around and outbursted, "Well, at least I'm doing SOMETHING! Are you just going to stand around, because the more time we waste, the longer Wendy could be lost in some multi-dimensional subspace!"

"Okay, calm down! Look, the only way we'll have any hope of understanding this portal is if we have the journals." Dipper held up Journal 2 and flipped its pages. "But without the first one, it's hopeless."

"Dipper, look!" Mabel called after getting up from searching behind some barrels. "I found it!" She ran over.

"It…It can't be." Dipper gaped at the book in her hands. It had a six-fingered hand with a '1'. "JOURNAL NUMBER ONE?!" He excitedly took the book and flipped through its pages. "I don't believe it! W-Was it just lying around?!"

"I guess so." Mabel shrugged.

"Th-Th-This is great!" Dipper opened to the pages depicting blueprints. He laid all three journals on the floor, aligning them to make the full blueprint. "Now we might be able to get it working again! Not only that, we can also figure out why the Author made it!"

"Let me see!" Carla flew over, landed in Dipper's way, and stood over the blueprints. The corresponding pages depicted other parts of the machine. She took the books, flew over to these parts (such as the temperature dials, toxic waste chambers), and compared them to how the books read… "This isn't right. A few things match up, but other parts are…" She found a page with an empty machine where it looked like something would go. "What is this?"

Dipper came over and looked at this design. "Another part to the portal? Maybe it's around here some-"

"WAAAAAHHH!" They heard Mabel screaming, followed by loud banging sounds. The two rushed back in to see Mabel fallen on her back, grappling hook extracted and attached to a metal rectangle. There was now an opening in the wall. "Uhh… I meant to do that?" Mabel said, unsure of herself.

The three entered the hidden chamber revealed by her. The empty machine that the journal depicted was standing before them. "This is it." Dipper said as he and Carla approached it. "It looks like something goes here. But the journal doesn't say." He looked at the page.

Mabel picked up a bar light from a box and turned it on as it emitted a purple light. "Ha ha! Dipper, look!" Mabel shone it on herself. "Do I look spooooky?"

"Co-ho-mon, Mabel!" Dipper chuckled, approaching his sister. "We need to focus here."

Mabel glanced down at the open journal. "Dipper, what're those white lines?"

He and Carla looked at the journal. The purple light not only exposed the invisible ink, but the machine had a huge, gem-like thing in its chamber. "Is this what the Author used to see his own ink?" Carla thought aloud. "But what is that thing?"

"Wait… I recognize it." Dipper said. "I saw it once when I visited the KND Museum. It's the Master Emerald!"

"So can we use that emerald to power the portal?" Mabel asked.

"It appears to be the case." Carla observed. "If you children know where it is, then I encourage you to get it!"

"You're right!" Dipper nodded seriously. "We'll get the others and bring that emerald ASAP! Don't worry, Carla, we'll save them before you know it!" He and Mabel ran off in a hurry.

Carla returned to the portal chamber and stared at the disabled device. Her little heart filled with worry. "Wendy… please be safe. …Oh…" Carla touched a paw to her forehead. "My head hurts for some reason… sigh, it's probably nothing."

Dimension "Fiore"

Chelia brought Wendy to the edge of the forest, standing atop a hill that overlooked a small town. "What's this place?" Wendy asked.

"It's Clover Town." Chelia answered. "It's in Southeast Fiore."

"What's Fiore?"

"The country we live in, of course!" Chelia giggled.

"I've never heard of…"

Chelia looked at Wendy with a questionable frown. She touched her friend's forehead. "You must really feel sick… Hopefully, Fairy Tail will be able to help you."

"You never told me what that is."

"Ugh, it's the guild you work at! Wendy, don't you remember anything?"

"I remember you!"

"Yeah, but you have a weird story on how we met! Look, we'll talk about this later, let's just hop a train and get to Magnolia."

"Do we need a train? 'Cause we can just run there."

"Hmhm, hyou'd have to have pretty strong legs to run that far."

"Yeah, but I'm pretty used to that." With that, Wendy dashed down the hill, across the town, and Chelia only saw her as a strip of wind.

"WENDY, WAAAAIIT!!" Chelia cried. Just as fast, Wendy came back in seconds. "When did you GET so fast?!"

"I've always been fast!" Wendy chuckled. "I kind of thought you were, too."

"Well, I'm not! I trip a lot, anyway! I admit it seems more efficient, but I can't keep up with you."

"It's okay. I can just carry you like this." Wendy aimed her wand and yelled, "Reducio!" She shrunk Chelia down to doll size.

"WAAAAAAHHH!" The tiny screamed with high pitch. "Where did you learn to do this?!"

"I think something's wrong with your head, too!" Wendy chuckled, picking Chelia up and placing her partway under her dress collar. "Just tell me where to go and I'll get there in a jiffy!"

"Sure, Wendy." Chelia smiled confusedly. Boy, she seems really different. I wonder… is this the same Wendy? (Play "Camelot Castle" from Sonic and the Black Knight.)

Stage B-14: Homecoming Kingdom

Mission: Get to Fairy Tail!

Wendy raced down the hill, whooshing across the first village street and evasively dodging the townspeople, who as usual were whipping to face Wendy in surprise. She turned a left street, dodging the trees and jumping the small rivers that flowed in-between parts of the ground. "Wendy, be careful not to hit anything! I don't wanna go squish!" Chelia yelled.

"I'm sorry, Chelia! I'll be careful!" Wendy was reaching the edge of town, going up a road that was paved into a hill.

"Wendy, you're going the wrong way! The train tracks are the other way!"

"Darn it!" Wendy made a loop around a forest path, coming back to town and hitting some Spring Pads that bounced her onto the roofs. Bird-Knights appeared, avians made of dark energy and wearing knight helmets. Wendy cast spells to knock some away, but she also used them to bounce over large gaps between buildings. After making it across the town, Wendy landed at the base of a forest hill, and dashed up as she sidestepped the Spear-Knights (knights wielding long jousting lances and made of the same dark matter).

Wendy found the train tracks, and on Chelia's instruction, she hopped on and grinded leftward, blowing air behind her to move faster as usual. Shield-Knights sprouted up to thwart her progress, so Wendy had to jump between the twin rails to get around them. The tracks seemed to be steadily curving right, so the forest trees made it impossible to see ahead of them. "We're about to reach Clover Canyon. Wendy, be caref-"

"WAAAAAHH!" Caught completely off guard by the huge train, Wendy instinctively jumped off on her left. They were over Clover Canyon, but she thankfully landed on a cliff path, running down, jumping off the end, and using airbending to kick off a ledge. She flew across the chasm toward a pillar holding the train bridge, kicked off to another ledge, and kicked again before landing on a ground. The canyon was very deep and vast, and the chasm was nothing but fog. "You know, Wendy, some people don't think this canyon even has a bottom." Chelia smirked.

"Gulp. I better not fall." Eye-Knights surrounded Wendy, but she shot them down with quick blasts from her wand. Wendy began to run across a set road atop the canyon, jumping a few small stalagmites and avoiding the Crossbow-Knights. "Chelia, what are these creatures, anyway?"

"They're knights from a guild called Tartaros. They've been appearing a lot lately, it's kind of worrisome. Still, what I'd like to know is why all these springs are just lying around."

"That sounds like something worth questioning, too."

"Look, Wendy! Flying Fish!" When they were reaching a ledge over the canyon, they saw a flock of huge fish with blue scales, yellow faces, big open mouths, and yellow bird wings. Wendy smiled in amazement at the creatures, using them as platforms to get across the chasm. Afterwards, she jumped off on a road within the canyon, following it as it sloped down, turned right, slightly left, then turned flat and straight across a ground that was crumbling. A Crossbow-Knight was launching arrows from the other side, and Wendy avoided them while also sidestepping the weak parts of ground. She cast an Attack Spell on the knight, running past as the road curved right.

She hit a spring at the edge of the cliff, sending the girls flying up to a passing train. She landed on one of the platforms between cars, entered the train, and dashed down the center, scaring all the passengers with the force of her wind. "Sorry, everyone! I'm just in a hurry, usually careful, sorry!" Wendy jumped off the back car and grinded across the tracks before they brought her to a huge train station. Wendy entered the station, swiftly evading the townspeople as she raced up some stairs, and exited onto one of the station's roof levels.

Wendy used airbending to knock down the Crawl-Knights that were climbing up the sides of the building. She hit a spring in the corner of the roof to bounce to the next level, blew down more Crawl-Knights before reaching another spring, and at the top of the station, she grabbed a zipline and flew down to the rooftops of the city. "You know, Wendy, I don't recall you being this coordinated in your running, much less jumping across roofs!"

"Actually, it does seem like I've been getting more balanced- AAAH!" Wendy tripped on the edge of a roof, fell to a lower building as she stumbled on her feet, and when she jumped to the next roof, she collapsed onto her back. "Ow… You okay, Chel?"

"Just dandy. . ." Chelia was dizzy. Wendy got back up, jumped off this last roof, and began to race across a mountainous region. "This valley cuts straight to Magnolia. With your speed, we'll get there in no time!" Wendy made a great leap over a huge gap, landing safely on the opposite cliff as it brought her to a steep slope. Wendy was unable to slow down, she sidestepped to avoid the Spear-Knights, but feared jumping would result in a bumpy landing.

She was glad when the ground became flat at the bottom, but when she was about to run across a seemingly flat plain, a series of stone prisms popped up and created a maze. Wendy attacked all the Underworld Knights she encountered, but the maze really impeded her quick progress. Eventually, she found the exit, and didn't hesitate to boost up the next hill, down the other side, and then skidded across a river. "Wendy, I still can't believe how fast you've gotten!"

"Chelia, why are you acting like this is the first time we met?"

"It isn't the first time! But you're the one who's acting weird between us, Wendy. …Look! That's Magnolia! Just a little bit until we reach Fairy Tail!"

They arrived at a very populace town, and Wendy's first act was to skid across a canal, dodging the people on rowboats, whom were naturally looking at Wendy in surprise. She jumped onto a bridge and zipped right into the town. "Turn right at this next street!" Wendy nodded and turned again, coming toward a great cathedral. "Oops, this is Kardia. My mistake. Um, just go around and go left."

"Er, okay." Confused, Wendy ran around the right of the church, curved left and raced down an alleyway. She skidded to halt before some Shield-Knights, but her Lamia Scale was easily able to knock the creatures out. Wendy crossed the bridge of another canal, then raced over a straight road as she attracted the attention of townspeople. She thought she heard one of them say, "Wait, is that Wendy Marvell?"

Wendy bypassed the South Gate Park, where friends and acquaintances were casually hanging about. She swerved left, crossing another town street and making it to a central street. "Wait, there it is! On the right!" Chelia pointed. "The guild hall and Kardia are directly across from each other! Silly me."

"That's it, huh?" Wendy saw the building in the distance. "Okay." With a determined look, Wendy boosted across town, dodged all the citizens, and made it to the building. (End song.)

It was about three stories tall, had red roofs, and looked like a church itself, given the belfry with the big gold bell up top. An orange banner showed a symbol Wendy couldn't make out, and the sign above the gates read Fairy Tail. "Wendy, can I get big now?"

"Oh, right!" Wendy put her friend on the ground, aimed her wand, and called, "Engorgio." Chelia stretched back to normal.

"Phew. Now if I could ask you to never tell my guildmates about that. Well… here it is!"

"'Fairy Tail'?" Wendy read the sign. "I thought it was spelled the other way?"

"No, it's spelled that way on purpose. It's based on the idea that fairies have tails, which is what that symbol's supposed to be. …Wendy, I asked you the same thing and that was your answer." Chelia stared at her weirdly. "Are you trying to quiz me?"

"N-No! I… So, is this where you live, too?"

"Hmhm, no, I work for Lamia Scale. …Look, Wendy, since you have amnesia, I'll introduce you, anyway. Come on, it'll be alright."

Chelia held a hand out, giving a kind and trustful smile. Wendy stared at it, then slowly reached over and took her hand.

The pink-haired mage guided her past the gates and to the front door. Chelia knocked on the door. The person to answer was a tall, teen girl with long white hair and wearing a red dress. "Oh? Well, hello, Chelia!" The girl greeted with a smile. "If you're looking for Wendy, she…" However, she reopened her eyes and noticed the blue-haired child. "Wendy?"

"I found her in the forest." Chelia replied. "She looked a little lost and… dizzy. And, for some reason, her eyes are red."

"Red?" The girl – Mirajane – looked at Wendy's eyes and noticed this. Wendy remained silent, confused as to how this woman seemed to know her. "Well, come on inside, you two. We'll straighten this out." The two airbenders followed her into the building.

"Hey, everyone!" Mirajane called to all the inhabitants sitting at the tables. "Chelia's here, and she brought Wendy!"

"Hi, Wendy!" Levy greeted, a teen girl with short light-blue hair and an orange top.

"Back already?" a tan-skinned girl in a bikini – Cana – asked. "You didn't scrape your knee and cry, did you?" She proceeded to drink a barrel of beer.

"Yeah, Wendy, weren't you on a mission with Team Natsu?" a boy with spiky dark-purple hair, and a red vest that exposed his abs, asked.

Wendy gasped at seeing him. "Romeo! What're you doing here?"

"Huh?" Romeo looked confused. "I… kinda live here, sorta. I'm a Fairy Tail wizard like you."

"Like… me?"

The people all faced Wendy and noticed the look on her face. She really didn't look like herself. For one, she had red eyes and pointy ears, and the guild mark on her right shoulder was missing. "Wendy, what exactly were you doing before I found you?" Chelia asked.

"…" Wendy looked down shyly, not sure how to respond. "I…I was going through a portal with a friend of mine… but we got separated. Before that, I was traveling with other friends in Gravity Falls, then we…"

"Gravity Falls?" Mirajane repeated.

"I've never heard of a place like that." Elfman said suspiciously. He was a muscular man with spiky white hair.

"Me neither." Gajeel replied. He had long, spiky black hair, and metal nails in several parts of his body. "Do you think she could be from Edolas?"

"The Edolas Wendy was taller, and…" Pantherlily (a small black panther) stared at Wendy's chest. "Well, yes, taller. However, perhaps she could be from another world, like Edolas."

"Do you think you could tell us more about… where you came from?" asked Levy.

Wendy felt a little awkward with everybody staring at her, eagerly expecting a story. She never felt this popular in a crowd before. Wendy decided to tell them about herself, how she was an orphan with an airbending curse, forced to run around the world. She told them how she met Dr. Facilier, who became her teacher, and she found a weird winged cat named Carla. She mentioned meeting Chelia before, and then how she was sucked into a machine called the Multiverse Portal, along with MaKayla.

"Hey, slow down, I can't keep up that fast!" Gajeel spoke up.

"Good thing you've got me, right?" Levy giggled.

"So you're a different Wendy," Romeo recapped, "but you know a Chelia, a Carla, and a 'me' from your world. What about the rest of us?"

"No, I…I don't know any of the rest of you." Wendy replied. "Wait, there's a Carla in this world, too? W-What's she like, what kind of creature is she?"

"She's from a sentient cat race known as Exceed, like myself." Pantherlily replied.

"Exceed?…"

"Boy, she seems really confused." Levy said to the others. "I'm not sure what to do…"

"You don't have to worry about it." Wendy said, turning around to leave. "Maybe I'll find a way back if I go back to the forest. I don't want to trouble you guys."

"Wait a minute, don't go!" Mirajane grabbed her arm. "We wanna help you."

"Why? I'm not the Wendy you know…"

"Who cares!" Levy said perkily. "Any Wendy is still Wendy. And even if you weren't, we can't just ignore someone who needs help."

"Let's go down to the library and see if we can find any books about this." Mirajane suggested.

"Can I come, too?" Chelia asked.

"Sure, if you want to!"

"Wendy, feel free to make yourself at home." Levy told her as they headed to a different room. "I figure traveling between dimensions can make one exhausted."

"W-…" Wendy wanted to say something along the lines of, 'You really don't have to' or 'Please let me help, too', but they were moving so quick as though they made up their minds and were confident about their decisions.

"Um…" Romeo approached Wendy, scratching his head in a nervous manner. "So, the other me, from your world… What am I like?" He gave a sheepish grin.

"I…" Wendy smiled and blushed as she answered, "don't really know you very well because we only met twice. Ha ha ha…"

"Oh…" Romeo frowned. "That's fair, 'cause I don't exactly talk to Wendy much. Well, maybe we can get to know each other now. I'll tell you about our world, and you tell me about… yours."

"Um… Sure, that sounds fun!"

"Oooooooo," Cana moaned from her table, wobbling drunkily, "Romey's got a daaa-aaaate…"

Romeo flushed. He began to lead Wendy outside. "So, what kind of person… is your Wendy like?" she asked.

"Oh… She's awesome."

MaKayla's world

"Rukia!" MaKayla called to the black-robed spirit girl. "Remember me? We met back on Arendelle!"

"Arendelle?" Rukia asked. "I've never seen you before. How do you know my name?"

"What are you talking about? You helped my friend, Miyuki out? The white-haired girl? Then we helped you guys beat those Arrancar."

"If this is some trick to manipulate my mind, I won't fall for it!" Rukia clutched her sword hilt and threatened to draw it.

"No no no no!" Kayla waved her hands frantically. "Please, I…I'm just a little lost and confused! Can you… tell me where this is?"

"Why don't you explain yourself first, stranger? I'm sensing some kind of spiritual pressure from you, so I can tell you're not an ordinary human."

Still confused over Rukia's lack of memory, MaKayla explained her position in Sector IC, she was a timebender, and she could separate her soul from her body. "I don't understand any of that other stuff," Rukia said, "…but if you can separate your soul, does that mean you're a Soul Reaper?"

"You mean a Grim Reaper?"

Both of them were silent for a moment. "Hold on…" MaKayla thought aloud, remembering the portal she just fell through. "Is it possible… I'm in another dimension?"

"Another dimension?" Rukia repeated.

"Um… Can you get me off this building first?" Kayla asked with a blush, almost forgetting that she was on a hundred-foot skyscraper. "Then you can tell me about this place."

On a city street minutes later

"So this universe is composed of three dimensions," Kayla recapped as she and Rukia walked downtown, "the Living World, Soul Society, and Hueco Mundo. Sounds kinda like our Spirit and Underworlds. Except we also have a Negaverse, a Netherverse, and a Dream World…"

"The point is that you're definitely not from around here." Rukia stated. "Whatever this portal is you mentioned, I'm afraid it could create an upset on our dimensional plain. How do we send you back?"

"I don't know. We just found the portal machine recently, and it was constructed by our enemies. It sucked in me and…!" Kayla's eyes widened. "I got separated from Wendy! She has blue hair and a green dress; I don't know if she landed around here or if she landed in a different universe!"

"Calm down. Look, I promise to help you in any way I can. I'll get the other Soul Reapers to help, too, but I can't promise you they'll be very trusting. However, there's one person in particular I think would have knowledge on the subject. We'll visit him first."

"He's not crazy, is he?" Kayla asked with a sheepish smile. "I'm just wondering if I should brace."

Rukia chuckled. "Well, he's… pretty sane. But there is that unpredictable side to him, though."

Urahara Shop

Rukia brought Kayla to a small, wooden shop in a downtown alley. There were two kids sweeping the ground outside: a boy with red hair and blue shorts, and a thin girl with black hair in pigtails, sandals, and a pink skirt with white polka dots. Both of them wore a white shirt with red Japanese letters that read Urahara Shop.

"Hm?" The redheaded boy looked up when the two girls approached. "Check it out, Ururu. Rukia's back with some other chick."

"Hello, Jinta and Ururu." Rukia greeted them. "This is MaKayla. She's… lost, and we thought Kisuke could help her find her way home."

Kayla gasped at seeing them. Her most clear memory was of a Girls' Boxing Tournament on Moonbase. "Jinta? Ururu? From Sector JP?!"

"Who's from what now?" Jinta asked.

"Jinta, don't play dumb. I remember you fighting in that boxing tournament for girls!"

Jinta flinched and blushed. Ururu asked, "Jinta-kun, when did you do that? Are you a pervert?"

"NO!" Jinta pointed panickingly at Kayla. "That girl's a liar!! She's an evil spirit of deception out to get us! Ururu, brace yourself!" He grabbed his broom. "Get ready to fight for your dignity!"

"But I'm too young for fanservice!" Ururu covered her chest.

"Please, just relax!" Rukia yelled. "We think MaKayla comes from a different dimension. She claimed to have met me in the past, but her story was unfamiliar. Let us speak to Urahara."

"Fine, the old man is inside." Jinta said with a scowl. "Go and confront him about his sexual desires, not mine!"

"I wouldn't even have known you had some, were it not for you telling me." Kayla remarked as she and Rukia entered the shop.

"I DO NOT!!" Jinta screamed. Ururu blushed and backed away from the boy.

Rukia led Kayla to the back of the shop, finding a man in a black jacket and a white- and green-striped bucket hat. "Thought I sensed your spiritual pressure, Rukia. But who's the one beside you?"

"Kisuke, this is MaKayla. She's from another dimension. Kayla, this is Kisuke Urahara. He owns this shop."

"You can call me Mr. Hat-and-Clogs." Kisuke stood up and turned around. He wore a green shirt and pants under his jacket, hid his face with a fan, and was barefoot. He had pale yellow hair.

"Ha ha, okay!" Kayla beamed. "You can call me Ms. Hat-and-Slippers."

"Well, the 'MK' on your shirt's gonna make me call you that." Kisuke closed his fan, showing his cool smile. His hat shadowed his eyes. "So, what's the situation, again?"

"I was sucked into a portal and landed in this town." Kayla recapped. "I know who Rukia and Jinta are because they work for my organization, the Kids Next Door. I think I'm in some kind of parallel universe."

"Kisuke," Rukia spoke, "I know this is sudden, and I don't really understand it either, but if nothing is done-"

"Now, hold on." Kisuke interrupted. "I seem to remember something like this happening. It was a few years ago, when I was walking around the forest, I met a strange man in a brown coat who claimed to be from another universe. He called himself Ford."

"Ford?" Kayla asked.

"Yes. He told me he constructed a portal whose purpose was to pierce far into the Dimensional Byway, cross the Sea of Worlds, and find the Original Worlds."

"The Original Worlds?"

"Of course," Kisuke laughed, "naturally, I just HAD to ask him what the hell he was talking about! And before we knew it, we became close friends, and we would be pen pals if we knew how to send letters across universes. He told me about his world, showed me his journal…"

"Then this Ford must have been the Author of Dipper's journal!" Kayla realized. "Mr. Hat-and-Clogs, what happened to Ford? He must have gotten back home!"

"Well, of course. Out of nowhere, a powerful beam of light fell down from the sky, and Ford bid me farewell before jumping in. He claimed it was the call-back system of his portal. He said it was dangerous for the portal to stay on for too long, so he sets it to switch off after being used, but it is programmed to self-activate at a later time and track down his location."

"So if I just wait around, then the portal will reactivate and I can go back?"

"I don't know. But here's something else a little interesting: Ford showed me a drawing in his journal: a cube with strange writing on it. Back when I worked for the 13 Court Guard Squads, I came upon a stone pyramid deep in the dungeon cells. Its writing was similar to the writing on Ford's drawing. In fact, I think I still have the picture." Kisuke went beside his counter in the store and pulled out an old, wrinkled paper. "See? Drew the pyramid myself."

MaKayla studied the picture. The pyramid had an eye on its tip, like Bill Cipher. The writing was indeed similar. "The Original Worlds… the Gibberish Rocks… so they are connected. Mr. Hat-and-Clogs… do you have any idea of the purpose of this pyramid? Do you know anyone else who's… interacted with it in some way?"

"Hmm…" Kisuke stroked his chin. "Now that I think about it… when we were kids, I recall Aizen sneaking into the dungeons just for fun. …When he came back, that's when he started acting weird."

"Aizen?" The name sparked a reaction in Rukia. "Well, did you ask him what he saw in there?"

"Not really. To be honest, I just thought he saw two prisoners doing adult things."

"Who's Aizen?" MaKayla asked.

"It's a long story." Rukia replied.

"Anyway, I don't know if your portal is gonna call you back at some point." Kisuke said again. "But I doubt anyone in Soul Society will have any clue as what to do, so I guess you're stuck here. Why not go for a walk, get some fresh air." He said in a laid back fashion. "You know, since you're new in town, I'll offer you some free samples of my candy."

"That'd be nice." Kayla chuckled. "My money's probably no good here."

"Maybe I should stay with you until you can go home." Rukia offered. "You mentioned that there are Hollows in your world, well that's no different here. I should protect you."

"Hey, I can protect myself, just so ya know." Kayla folded hands behind her head. "But I appreciate it."

After she took some candy from Urahara's shop, she and Rukia began their casual stroll downtown. He said it was only a few years ago when he met Ford. Kayla thought. Just how recently did the Author vanish, exactly? Or maybe… the Multiverse Portal can travel through Space AND Time!

Negaverse; Dnalhsa Park

"Everyone, I hereby call this meeting of Sector Leaders to order!" Ynohtna announced to the operatives gathered around the park fountain, which the bucktoothed boy was standing on. The participants included Arorua, Ydolem, and Asia. "Because of Egroeg and AlyakAm's recent treachery, Cousin Nerehc has decreed that Sector -IC needs a new leader. And we have all decided that Numbuh -6:00m.a., Ikuyim Latsyrc, is most appropriate for the job!" There was little applause as Ikuyim came to stand by Ynohtna.

"Thank you, Ynohtna!" Ikuyim proclaimed happily. "I promise to do my absolute best to help my sector recover. Honestly, even Yrret is having a hard time being good again, but Egroeg and Alyak, too?? It really tears at my heartstrings!"

"Why are we having this meeting outside?!" Sector -JP leader, Nirak whined, flailing her arms. "My shoes are getting all dirty, and there's so many bugs!"

"I think a gathering of friends in fresh air livens our spirits and boosts our creativity!" Ynohtna cheered.

"The air might be more breathable than it used to," Asia replied, "but it's still smelly enough to derive us from focus." She sprayed some freshener.

"Maybe, but we're steadily getting there. Look at this fountain, for instance!" The Nega-Sector W leader turned to look in the water. "It's so clean now, we can see our reflections! And look how shiny it is. …" The fountain began to glow. "Eh?"

"WAAAAH!" Five figures came flying out of the fountain, plopping on the ground before the leaders. Ikuyim approached and studied the group of 7-year-olds.

"Huh? Ynohtna, it's your Positive!" Ikuyim pointed at the barefoot boy who looked like him.

"YOOOO!" Another person flew out of the fountain and landed on his face in the grass. His lower half was propped up before falling down, then he jumped to his feet. "Yo, yo!" Killer Bee, the ninja rapstar, rapped. "I was travelin' on a stormy island when I saw these kids, they beat the snot out of some god with this, supah-dupah thundered-up angel, then the Goddess o' Light sent us to this world with a opposite angle, fools, ya fools!"

"Owww… where are we…" Anthony moaned as they helped their selves up.

"'Tis the Negaverse, fair enough." Fybi observed. "The air is noxious."

"You said it, Cous." Asia remarked.

"Anthony!" Ynohtna jumped down to hug him from behind. "Nice to see you again! I missed you so."

"I didn't miss you, Shoe Boy." Anthony broke away from him. "The only reason we're here is 'cause Palutena sent us."

"We were under attack by one of the World Leaders from our world." Aranea explained. "Palutena thought we would be safe in Ynohtna's care."

"Awwwwe." The Negative boy cooed. "That's so sweet of Palutena."

"Yeah, but we don't like it." Anthony stated. "On the bright side, it feels nice to be on solid ground again." He brushed his foot along the pavement.

"Hey, are you an earthbender?" Ikuyim asked.

"Yeah, so what?"

"That's funny! I'm an earthbender, too!" She pointed at her bare feet.

"Oh. Well, you're already cooler than your Positive."

"Anthony, maybe Ikuyim can teach you some new things." Sally smiled intuitively. "You were in the middle of training before we had to help Fybi."

"Shyeah, but Tom was a lavabender." Anthony folded his arms in a haughty fashion. "I bet Ikuyim doesn't do anything close to that."

"Well, my sister is a lavabender," Ikuyim laughed, "but I doubt she would be a good teacher. But Anthony, have you ever heard of Nature Crystals?"

"No?"

"They're supernatural crystals that grow from the Heart of the World and have unique properties. They're very fluent with a planet's very life force. I first learned of my earthbending when I trained to sense these crystals!"

"Okay, so you can sense magic crystals. But I wanna learn earthbending to fight, how does that help me?"

"Fools, ya fools!" Killer Bee rapped. "If nature and elements were used to battle, every bender would be an offender! Then their brothers go tattle, and that's immature, but we wanna be mature, that's why it rhymes with nature, ya dig?"

"Ha ha ha ha!" Ikuyim laughed with a sunny expression. "I think what this man means is, you'll only get stronger by bonding with your element! Don't just focus on the parts that would help you battle better, you have to know why your element is so wonderful to begin with!"

"I already know all that nature crud." Anthony stated. "Chiri taught it to me, how the earth is a living organism that 'cares for its children like a mother' or somethin'. I'm already pretty good at Seismic Sense."

"This much is true, Anthony, but there's a lot more you need to learn." a woman's voice said.

"Well, I wanna get ta learning the important stuff before I… Wait, whut?" The boy looked around in confusion.

"Look!" Ynohtna pointed at the fountain. A bright projection of Goddess Palutena rose from the water as the Negatives gazed in awe.

"Goddess Palutena…" Asia stared.

"I had time to whip up this self-aware hologram to tell you a few things." Palutena said. "Anthony, you are aware that you are a member of the Granite Family, who are said to be the leaders of the Four Earthbender Families. But did you know that, on many occasions throughout history, the Granites have always been taught by the other families?"

"Um… no. Wait, so did my mom learn from the other families?"

"Well, she never had the chance to. But don't be fooled just because she made Logia. If you really want to become stronger, you will have to train under the other families. Your mom and your sister taught you what the Granites should know, and Tom of the Sovites was kind enough to be your teacher… You'll be happy to know that the other families have kids who are still learning their abilities as well. I think they're the ones you should train with." She gave a smile.

"So, shouldn't my sister train with them, too?" Anthony cocked a brow.

"Oh, let your sister mature a little more. She's still so young and developing."

"My butt."

"Anthony, Ikuyim here is the daughter of the Latsyrc Family. They are part of the Negaverse's own Noble Earthbenders, for their ability to bend crystals and gems. They may not be infamous in their own history, but you can be the very first Granite to learn from them."

"Hmm… Doesn't sound bad." Anthony figured. "So do I have to learn from the other Nega-Families?"

"Not unless you wanna perform dark arts." Palutena said sheepishly. "Ikuyim should serve as a good teacher for now. But when you return to the Posiverse, search for Shelly Johnson, the daughter of the Quartzite Family. Her specialty is sandbending."

"But what about the fourth family?" Sally asked.

"The Hornfels daughter still hasn't awakened herself, yet. But when she does, I'll tell you." The goddess winked. "I'm about to fade off, so I wish you the best of luck. Be strong, Anthony, Fybi, and Harvey. Your future struggles are not far." And she was gone.

"…So the Hornfels is a girl. Fantastic." Anthony rolled his eyes.

"Why did she mention you, Harvey?" Aranea asked. "I know Fybi's a Light, and Anthony's the leader, but why you?"

"I dunno." Harvey swung his yo-yo. "Maybe she thinks I'm sweet!"

"Whatever." Anthony faced Ikuyim. "Okay, Crystal Girl, teach me how to crystalbend."

"Haha, I'm not a super-smart teacher, either!" Ikuyim blushed, scratching her head. "In fact, I really don't know any good training grounds for my style. Maybe we'll just do some warm-up exercises over there."

"Better than nothing." Anthony said as they adjourned a few yards away. "I just wanna shake off the skysickness."

Medusa watched them from afar, under the shade of a tree. "Thankfully, I happen to know the perfect training ground." She smirked.

Magnolia, Fiore

Three hours passed since Wendy came to this world. She had been exploring Magnolia with Romeo, who offered to buy Wendy ice cream (since her money was worthless in this world). Now they were at the South Gate Park, sitting under a lone tree. Romeo told her how Fairy Tail recently competed in the Grand Magic Games, where their Wendy met Chelia, he mentioned how the founder of their guild was a spirit girl called Mavis… And Wendy told him about element bending, which was kind of like their own elemental magic, but it wasn't… Romeo could detect Wendy's confusion by her own explanation.

"The truth is, I'm still a student." Wendy said with a blush. "Not even my teachers know the difference between magic and bending."

"Some teachers!" Romeo chuckled.

He felt a tinge of delight when Wendy shared in the laugh. "I guess so! …" They both sat silent for a moment, gazing up at the pretty blue sky. "Hm… It's so weird, talking about different worlds and universes like this." Wendy mentioned. "We're acting like I just came from another country."

"I know, I almost forget." Romeo blushed. "You look and act just like our Wendy… If it weren't for your eyes, I wouldn't tell you apart."

"So, is your Wendy… really popular? Everyone else seems to like her."

"Well, I think everyone in Fairy Tail likes each other the same. It's kind of our policy. But our Wendy wasn't sure of that at first, she had a lot of trouble fitting in… But in a way, I guess she is popular."

"Hmm…" Wendy looked down, smiling at the humorous thought that she had so many friends in another universe. "I guess your Wendy… wouldn't want someone like me stealing her friends."

"Are you kidding?? Two Wendys would be the greatest thing ever!"

"Huh?"

"Uh, n-nothing." Romeo flushed. "What I meant was… I'm sure our Wendy would be happy to welcome you. I don't know what it's like in your homeworld, but it's hard to find a better place than Fairy Tail."

"There you two are!" The two turned right to see Mirajane. "I had a feeling you lovebirds would be here."

"Ghhhh!" Romeo flushed, Wendy giggling at his reaction. "We're not lovebirds. …So, did you find anything, Mira-nee?"

"I'm sorry…" Mira frowned with regret. "We can't find any books that talk about 'Gravity Falls,' 'element bending,' 'Bill Cipher,' or any of that stuff Wendy described. You might have to stay with us for a while. Is that all right?"

Romeo turned to Wendy. The girl thought for a second, before giving a big smile. "Of course it's fine! As long as it isn't a huge burden for you."

"Not at all! Come on back to the guild and we'll give you something to eat if you're hungry."

At the guild hall, Wendy was given some slices of strawberry cake, orange gelatin with little blueberries inside, and juice to wash it down. Romeo's father, Macao and his friend, Wakaba thrilled Wendy with stories of their exciting adventures, and when they brought up what a catch they were with ladies, Mirajane smacked them out of anger, and Romeo shrunk in embarrassment. Cana, who was still drunk, found delight in picking Wendy up and feeling how light she was. She questioned if Wendy's breasts were smaller than their Wendy's, making Wendy blush.

Before they knew it, it was nighttime. Team Natsu still hadn't come back, yet, but since Wendy's room in the Fairy Hills would be left unoccupied, they found no harm in letting Wendy sleep there. But first, Levy and Mirajane invited her to a mini-sleepover to get to know her better. During her stories, they painted each other's nails and brushed their hair. They were sad how Wendy spent most of her life alone and homeless, but her ability to run fast was so cool, they wanted to hear details about her adventures. So Wendy told them every little jump, skid across water, and train-track-grinding that she remembered, making body motions to emphasize the excitement.

When she went to sleep in their Wendy's bed, with the wrinkles and texture left by its owner, it really felt like something she had lain on. It made her feel more like this was her original home.

This world really isn't so bad. Maybe… I could get used to it here. I guess I should help them look for a way to go back. Oh well… I'm not in a hurry.

If people really have parallels from Original Worlds,

What if those people went to those worlds?

Would they be treated the same as their Originals? Be welcomed by friends and family alike?

I wonder, if a person were to travel to their Original World,

Would they feel as though they always belonged in that world?

Depending on how great their life is there, they might forget it isn't their real home.

Or perhaps it always has been their real home. What if our people and Originals are one in the same?

That's what I told him I wanted to find out.

-Diary of Stanford Pines